Do you notice your cat suffering from chronic ear problems, coughing, wheezing, scratching, hair loss, vomiting and/or diarrhea, or digestive issues such as being gassy, bloated? Or maybe you hear your cat’s belly making some funny noises. All of these can be a sign of a food intolerance in our cats.
If your cat is experiencing any of the above mentioned issues, we first and foremost recommend taking them to the vet for an exam. While these can be signs of a food allergy, we want to be sure nothing else is going on.
The crazy thing about a food intolerance is that it can appear out of nowhere. Even if you are feeding the same exact food, your cat can still develop an allergy. So if you are suspecting a food sensitivity, and you are just not sure where to go from here, here are a few suggestions.
Food Intolerance In Cats
Let’s first talk about what the most common foods cats can have issues with. Chicken, beef, fish, wheat, soy, corn, and grains are on the top of the list. Chances are one or more of these ingredients are in your cat’s food.
So how do we find out what exactly is troubling our kitty? We need to do what is called the elimination diet. I suggest starting by taking all the top allergens out – so no chicken, beef, fish, wheat, soy, corn or grains. Then we want to start feeding one novel protein source to our cat. So say you go with pork, make sure the only protein in the food is pork.
You want to give the new protein several weeks to see if it’s a good choice for your cat. You want to eliminate all grains from your cat’s food. As obligate carnivores, they do not require grains as part of a species appropriate diet. Plus, with food sensitivities, it’s best to eliminate all we can to get your kitty relief. Once you find a protein that is a good fit, you will want to try to find 3 to 4 more so you can rotate your cat’s diet to lessen the chance of them developing new intolerances.
This is a slow process, but once you figure out what a good diet is for your cat, they will feel so much better and be much happier kitties!
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